JoANN FITZPATRICK: Other Democrats need not apply

Gov. Deval Patrick crossed a Hillaryworld line last month when he uttered the unthinkable.

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By JoAnn Fitzpatrick

The Enterprise, Brockton, MA

By JoAnn Fitzpatrick

Posted Jun. 7, 2014 at 12:01 AM

By JoAnn Fitzpatrick
Posted Jun. 7, 2014 at 12:01 AM

» Social News

COMMENTARY – The Hillary Express will accelerate next week when the book about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s State Department career will officially go on sale and the author will go on tour. Morsels already released are not very tasty but that was predictable: This is a candidate profile, not a valedictory.

Gov. Deval Patrick crossed a Hillaryworld line last month when he uttered the unthinkable – that the Democratic Party should have a real presidential primary and Clinton’s candidacy was not necessarily inevitable.

Phew, it’s about time someone with a voice worth hearing raised the question of why a majority of voters should be “Ready for Hillary” as her army of backers asserts. Patrick said he’s concerned “the inevitability thing ... is off-putting to the average voter.”

I’ll say.

It’s not just off-putting. The idea that no Democrat – no Democrat – should test the waters because poor Hillary didn’t make it last time when it was preordained that she’d be the first woman president is deeply offensive. And, if there was a doubt left in some corner of America that this is about both Hillary and Bill, the former president is putting that to rest on an almost daily basis.

He’s reciting the successes of the Clinton years with a broad hint – or is it a promise? – that the former first lady/former senator/former secretary of state will bring back the strong economy that led to financial stability for American families and a balanced federal budget.

The Clintons have good reason to boast about those successes but they are history. And there were those other times that are now re-surfacing – Monica Lewinsky being exhibit A.

When Hillary ran for president in 2008, Bill Clinton was restrained on the sidelines. That’s because Hillary was supposed to win in a walk and on her own. Then the road got bumpy. Recall how graceless Bill was when Barack Obama began to gather steam during the primaries: “This whole thing is the biggest fairy tale I’ve ever seen,” he fumed.

Once Obama was safely ensconced for a second term, Hillary’s turn once again became the imperative. As the media swung into perennial campaign format and Hillary began appearing at more public events, Democrats lost their tongues. Remember, the Clintons take names and they do not forgive easily. But something was bound to snap sooner or later.

Thank you, Deval. The Massachusetts governor, by the way, was a civil rights official in the Clinton Justice Department.

For those of us who find the prospect of a Republican president frightening – for one reason, check out the ages of Supreme Court justices – putting all the Democrats’ hopes in the Hillary basket seems foolhardy. The only certainty, two years away from the election, is that every bit of real scandal and supposed misdeeds surrounding the Clintons for the past quarter-century will be on full display yet again.

Page 2 of 2 - Does the country need this? From Monica to Benghazi (cue the tape, “… at this point, what difference does it make?”), the Republican base will be energized to race to the polls while independents are left to wonder: Is this all the Democrats have?

Those who believe a Hillary coronation will look serene while Republicans fight to prove who’s meanest of all are misguided. I don’t believe Republicans are stupid enough to repeat the traveling circus we saw in the 2012 primaries. The GOP already is hard at work compressing the primary schedule and moving up their national convention to limit that possibility.

JoAnn Fitzpatrick is the former editorial page editor of The Patriot Ledger. She may be reached at joannftzptrck@yahoo.com.

And Jeb Bush could jump in, too! A real moderate, by GOP standards. Only members of the press who view presidential contests as theatre rather than serious business drool for a Bush-Clinton brawl. Even Bush’s mother, Barbara, said last year that this country has many capable leaders not named Bush.

It’s cliché but true that the Clintons suck all the air out of the room. What they are trying to do is suck the air out of a primary challenge by keeping the guessing game going and thereby making inevitability unstoppable.

Usually there are favorites heading into the presidential season but the beauty of the primary system is that favorites often become footnotes or spectacular losers. Real voters decide.

There is no shortage of Democrats who could bring fresh perspectives, along with valuable experience to the presidential contest. They should be encouraged to jump in, not to stay silent.